When the conflict broke out in 2011, many Syrians fled their homes wearing just the clothes on their back. Last winter, strong winds, heavy snowfall and sub zero temperatures made life unbearable, with many internally displaced Syrians trying to survive in tents, self-built shelters and damp buildings. Working with our partners on the ground, we distributed over 60,000 food parcels in Idlib, Hama, Aleppo, Homs and Al-Haskakeh and provided warm clothes, mattresses and blankets.

Health: Polio Task Force

The health vaccination system has completely broken down in Syria. Although the country had been Polio-free for 14 years, there was a confirmed outbreak in the north in October 2013.

In January and February 2014, as part of a consortium of eight NGOs, we formed a Polio Task Force, providing vaccinations in seven districts and sourcing and providing the cold chain for our ‘round one’ and ‘round two’ door-to-door vaccination campaign.

Restraints on movement and supplies are becoming ever tighter throughout Syria. Mills and bakeries have closed down. Farmers have abandoned their wheat crops. And thousands of men, women and children are having to travel for miles, daily, in search of bread.

We’re committed to providing regular flour distribution. So far, we’ve delivered over 14,000 tonnes, feeding millions of people. Thanks to our partners on the ground, we’ve been able to access hard-to-reach places and more distributions are planned this year.

Food parcels

For the majority of refugees and internally displaced Syrians, humanitarian food assistance is their primary food source.

We’re proud to say we’ve sourced and distributed over 50,000 food parcels across the country, reaching thousands of hungry people. The parcels contained rice, pasta, lentils, oil and sugar and more distributions are planned this year.

Shelter

Almost nine million Syrians have been driven from their homes and now live in makeshift shelters and tents. With poor hygiene and unsafe drinking water, they are constantly at risk of waterborne diseases, which can cause acute respiratory infections and skin diseases.

To help, we’ve established a safe Families Village in Aleppo, accommodating 100 families (up to 700 people), including vulnerable women, children and the disabled. We’ve also provided mattresses, bedding, furniture and storage facilities, water and hygiene facilities, a kitchen, mosque, school and playground. We plan to provide another village this year.

Education

As well as enduring the psychological trauma of conflict and separation, thousands of Syrian children are being deprived of education - one in every five schools in Syria has been destroyed, damaged or converted into shelters. We’ve been supporting a school inside Qah refugee camp in northern Syria, providing teaching and psychological support for almost 800 children aged 6-15. We’ve also provided schools bags and warm winter clothing.

Recent projects: Gaza

Floods and winter campaign

In December 2013, after three days of torrential rain, many streets and homes in Gaza were completely submerged in water, causing $65 million in damage and severely affecting 1,500 families.

As well as helping to transfer people to safer zones, we also provided protective nylon sheets, food, water, mattresses, blankets and clothing, ultimately benefiting 5,040 people. We also provide Gazans with essential aid, including food, clothing and warm clothing, each winter.

Recent projects: Pakistan

Drought in Thar

Every year, the people of the Thar Desert, in southeast Pakistan, suffer from drought-induced famine, ultimately resulting in severe malnutrition and loss of precious human and animal life. This year, we’ve distributed food packs and safe drinking water to the vulnerable, including women and children.

Balochistan earthquake

In September 2013, an 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck in Balochistan, Pakistan, leaving 600 dead and 440 injured. Thousands of houses were flattened and more than 300,000 people were affected over six districts - Awaran, Kech, Gwadar, Panjgur, Chaghi and Khuzdar. After an initial assessment in District Awaran, we provided food and non-food items to affected communities in the most hard-to-reach areas of the district.

Flash floods in Punjab

In July 2013, the Punjab region of Pakistan and parts of eastern Afghanistan experienced unusually heavy rainfall, causing widespread flash flooding and killing 83 people and injuring 94.

We responded by providing emergency food and non-food items. We also established medical camps in the area.

Recent projects: Sustainable development

Olive trees

Since 2001, over a million olive trees have been destroyed in Palestine, depriving farmers of vital income and affecting biodiversity.

This year, we implemented a two month olive tree plantation project along with our partner, Zaqat Al Quds, providing 450 farmers in Jerusalem, Hebron, Bethlehem, Salfit, Tulkarem, Kaplan, Nablus, Tubas, Bitounia, Ramallah, Cooper, and Ras Karkar with screened saplings to cultivate. The trees are expected to bear fruit within three years.

Honey bee farms

We launched our first honey bee farm project in Azad Kashmir in 2009, providing full training and kits, including bees, equipment and clothing, to impoverished local families.

This pilot has proved highly successful. Thanks to ‘Mount Kashmir Honey,’ 70 trained beekeepers and 30 families are currently productive and self-sufficient. As honey is a commodity in high demand by both the food and health industries alike, we’re also providing honey bee farming kits to several farmers in Jerusalem.

Agriculture and tools

Agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan’s economy, with over 70% of people dependent upon the sector for their incomes.

We have provided famers in District Manshra and Bagh Azad Kashmir with extensive training in tunnel farming, kitchen gardening and livestock management, providing them with agricultural tools – everything they need for a sustainable future.

Poultry farming

Sustainable livelihoods depend on the right projects being implemented in the right places. With its temperate climate and rural surroundings, Manshehra District in KPK is ideal for poultry farming.

We provided 19 impoverished families with birds and feed, as well as training and materials for constructing sheds. Our beneficiaries are now selling eggs in local markets, increasing their incomes whilst improving nutrition within their families and communities

Tomato tunnel farming

We piloted our first organic tomato tunnel project in District Mansehra, Pakistan, in January 2013, providing 25 farmers with extensive on-the-job training.

We also supported five of the farmers by establishing 10 tunnels (two per farmer), each with capacity for 384 plants with an estimated high yield of 786 kilos of tomatoes. The second phase yielded a total of 2,500 kilos with five months, generating an average revenue of Rs. 20,000 (£120) per farmer.

Orchard development

In partnership with the National Agriculture Research Council (NARC), we’ve trained the local farmers of Dhirkot, District Bagh in Azad Jamu in organic olive tree cultivation.

We gave them certified saplings, bio pesticides and sprays and we’ll continue providing organic sprays and fertilizers that are in balance with the natural environment. A team of volunteers, field staff and farmers are cultivating the saplings and the trees are expected to bear fruit within four years.

Livestock management training

We initiated a successful livestock management training project in Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab, where livestock rearing has much potential thanks to the availability of water and cheap fodder.

We engaged 22 farmers, providing them with livestock management training, cows and bulls. We also provided widows in Azad Jamu and Kashmir with goats to provide milk, which can either be consumed by the family or sold, whilst the goats’ offspring ensure a sustainable supply.

Sewing machines

We’re giving women in Kashmir and Punjab the gift of a brighter future with specially designed training and sewing machines.

As well as establishing two skills development centres, so far providing 200 women with full training in sewing, fashion design and embroidery skills, we’ve also distributed certificates and sewing machines to the women.

Skills development

Our one year pilot project in Bangladesh is empowering women by providing vocational education and skills training.

Together with our partner, Novo Jibon, we’ve been working specifically with disadvantaged and destitute women living in the slums of Dhaka and surrounding Mirpur as this area has a high number of garment factories. To date, more than 42 women have been trained in sewing, embroidery, tailoring, jute and paper bag making, screen printing and basket weaving.

Recent projects: Water

WASH (Water, Hygiene and Sanitation)

In Pakistan, the lack of sanitary systems and heavily contaminated water means diseases like hepatitis A, e.coli, cholera and salmonella are rife. To reduce waterborne diseases we have provided manual hand pumps and water wells, supplying safe water to villages and communities. With access to clean drinking water, we are reducing infant mortality and enabling children and women to dedicate more time to education, work and home.

Hand pumps

We’ve installed hand pumps in District Faislabad, Punjab, using a boring machine.

Each pump is serving around 20 households, their livestock and crops. Beside the hand pump, we construct concrete plinths to keep the area clean, which our beneficiaries can use to wash clothes and utensils, etc. We also test the water quality before we start the project.

Water wells

We install two types of water wells. One by digging and one by boring, depending on the land.

On hard, mountainous and rocky lands, our boring machines dig some 200 to 300 feet into the earth to reach water level, while in soft land or plain areas, where water is closer to the surface, digging is the most suitable method.

Water tank and WASH facilities

We’ve installed a water tank and WASH (water, hygiene and sanitation) facilities at a mosque in one of District Manshera KPK’s most underdeveloped areas.

Koray mosque was without even basic water and sanitation, so we constructed a 9x9x10 feet water tank, providing two washrooms and an area for ablution for an entire village, comprising 60 households.

Recent projects: Orphans

Orphan sponsorship

We sponsor thousands of orphans around the world. We’re providing education, food and shelter – everything they need to create a brighter future for themselves.

Jerusalem Orphanage

With the number of orphans in Jerusalem increasing, we have begun constructing an orphanage, holistically caring for orphans through social, health, education, religious and economic aspects of their lives. The orphanage will house 60 orphans and provide services to over 6,000 orphans along with their guardians.

Recent projects: Education

A primary school in Myanmar

Since the outbreak of ethnic violence against the muslim Rohingya population in Myanmar, 140,000 displaced persons, including 23,000 children, live in refugee camps. The children are traumatised. They exist in dire poverty and have no access to education.

Working through our partners on the ground, we’re supporting the construction of a new primary school in Say Thamar refugee camp in Rakhine State. The school has four rooms, along with a veranda and playground and will provide an education for 600-750 children between the ages of five and nine.

A high school in Murree, Pakistan

Human Appeal in Pakistan has just completed a successful project to promote quality practical education and skills amongst students in the rural community of Murree, Punjab.

The project was funded by OPITO Oil and Gas Company, UK and will deliver sustainable learning solutions to students from classes 6 through to 10.

The school’s new facilities include physics, chemistry, biology, physics, and computer laboratories. Previously, students had been deprived of practical knowledge in these important subject areas and had to rely on books and theory.

Now, 595 youngsters will benefit and, so far, there has been an increase in the enrolment of girls as well as a reduced drop-out rate.​

Cycle to school project: Palestine

Due to the lack of infrastructure and dire economic situation following the siege, there’s a severe shortage of transportation in rural southern and central Gaza, forcing students to travel long distances to reach their schools.

Our cycle to school project has provided over 100 students with cycles, significantly reducing school drop-out and absenteeism.

Cycle to school project: Tunisia

Poverty is rife in rural Tunisia and education is critical in helping Tunisians to break the poverty cycle.

Long distances between schools and homes coupled with poor roads and unreliable public transport encourage absenteeism and drop-out. Our project is providing 200 needy students with bicycles, encouraging the children to attend class every day.

Recent projects: Health

Helping to create a healthier world

We are working hard to improve health conditions in some of the world’s poorest nations, helping with screenings, medical camps and medicines.

On World Health Day, we provided students from four schools in Pakistan with an orientation regarding controlling blood pressure. We have also initiated an ambulance service, supporting thousands of patients in Azad Kashmire and Khyber Pakhtoon Khwa.

Recent projects: Seasonal projects

Feeding the fasting

We help Muslims from underprivileged communities by providing them with food packs for Sahoor and Iftar. In 2013, we implemented this project in Kashmir, KPK, and Sindh, benefiting thousands of fasting Muslims in the most economically challenged areas.

Feeding the hungry at Christmas

Every year, we extend a helping hand, supporting the disadvantaged and poor minorities living in different parts of country. We distributed food packages on Christmas Day, 2013, helping over 660 individuals and 100 households.